by Introduction: The Rise of a Ballerina Assassin
In the world of action cinema, we’ve seen everything—from lone wolves to secret agents, from vigilantes to cyber-enhanced warriors. But nothing feels quite as visually poetic and terrifying as the Ballerina Assassin. Ana de Armas steps into a role that combines the elegance of ballet with the ruthless efficiency of a trained killer in Ballerina, a spin-off rooted in the John Wick universe.
This blog isn’t just about the action or the universe. It’s about Rooney—a woman with fire in her heart and blood on her hands. Through this lens, we will explore her journey, her training, her motivations, and how Ana de Armas redefines what it means to be a lethal heroine.
1. Ballerina Assassin: Symbolism Behind Ballet and Brutality
When you think of a ballerina, you think of grace, poise, and vulnerability. Now picture that same ballerina turning into a silent killer—trained to move with such precision that every pirouette ends with a bullet or a blade. That’s the unique angle that Ballerina Assassin Rooney brings to the table.
Ballet isn’t just a visual aesthetic in the movie—it is her combat philosophy. Her movements in fight scenes are choreographed like a dance, flowing smoothly yet unpredictably. This isn’t just about killing—it’s about delivering poetic justice, making each kill feel earned, expressive, and intimate.
The duality of the Ballerina Assassin is a metaphor for human nature: elegance hiding chaos. Rooney doesn’t just kill her enemies—she performs their end.
2. Ana de Armas as Rooney: Lethal Yet Vulnerable
Casting Ana de Armas as the Ballerina Assassin was a masterstroke. Known for her performances in Knives Out and No Time to Die, Ana embodies the character of Rooney with nuance and ferocity. Her eyes hold pain, but her hands hold death.
What sets Rooney apart from other action heroines is her emotional depth. She isn’t just out for blood; she’s out for closure. Every move, every shot, and every stab is driven by her search for the people who destroyed her family. And Ana de Armas delivers that pain in every scene—without saying a word.
Ana trained extensively for the role. Her ballet movements are real, and so is her hand-to-hand combat. There’s no stunt double doing all the work. As a 25-year-old boy watching this film, I could feel how much she committed to every second on screen.
3. The John Wick Connection: A Deadly World Expanded
The Ballerina Assassin exists in the same violent universe as John Wick—a world with its own rules, underground societies, and complex hierarchies of killers. Rooney was first briefly introduced in John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum, but now she gets her own bloody ballet.
This expansion of the Wickverse gives us a new perspective. While John is all about brute force, Rooney is about elegance. But both are driven by loss. Her enemies underestimate her because of her grace, only to fall victim to it. That irony is what makes this universe richer.
4. The Mission Begins: From Stage to Streets
Rooney’s story begins in the shadows of a stage. A trained dancer since childhood, she hides her past in the folds of music and movement. But everything changes when her family is murdered by assassins connected to her dark past. This is the catalyst that transforms her from a dancer into a Ballerina Assassin.
She doesn’t rely on guns alone. She uses knives, ropes, wires—even ballet shoes turned into weapons. Her journey to find her family’s killers takes her through underground rings, abandoned opera houses, black-market arms dealers, and more.
Every act of vengeance is a performance. Every step she takes is choreographed with purpose. This isn’t just revenge—it’s resurrection.
5. Female Assassin vs. Male-Dominated Genre
Action films often sideline women or objectify them. But Ballerina Assassin Rooney is not eye candy—she is a storm. She doesn’t seduce her way into kills. She fights, bleeds, and overcomes.
This film challenges the notion that brutality belongs to men. Rooney proves that elegance can be more terrifying than brute strength. As a young man watching this, I found myself rooting for her more than any action hero in recent years.
Her story isn’t about being a woman—it’s about being human, and fighting like hell for what’s lost.
6. Emotional Depth: Why Rooney’s Pain Feels Real
What makes Ballerina Assassin so powerful is not the fight scenes—it’s the silence between them. Rooney is haunted. She dances not just to fight but to remember. Her ballet sequences often play alongside flashbacks of her family, her childhood, and the quiet before the storm.
One of the most moving scenes in the film is when she dances alone in an empty theatre, wearing her bloodstained leotard. It’s not a performance—it’s grief.
We feel her rage. We understand her broken heart. That’s the strength of the script, and Ana’s raw performance turns pain into a weapon.
7. Training and Transformation: Becoming a Ballerina Assassin
Rooney’s transformation is as physical as it is emotional. She undergoes brutal training to become a Ballerina Assassin. Her body is pushed to the brink—dancing during the day, killing at night.
Her fight choreography includes real ballet poses—like the arabesque or the jeté—woven into her attacks. It’s not style over substance. It’s both.
Each scar she carries becomes part of her performance. Every bruise is a memory. Every step forward is one closer to justice.
8. Visual Style: Noir Meets Ballet
Director Len Wiseman blends the hyper-stylized violence of John Wick with soft lighting, muted colors, and classical music. The result is a visual poem soaked in blood.
Cinematography captures the contrast—ballet shoes stepping over corpses, soft piano notes over gunshots, and white dresses stained red. The visuals stay with you long after the movie ends.
The Ballerina Assassin doesn’t just move through scenes—she owns them. Each frame is a painting of power.
9. Legacy of the Ballerina Assassin in Pop Culture
Characters like Rooney change the game. She stands alongside iconic female assassins like La Femme Nikita, Beatrix Kiddo, and Atomic Blonde. But Rooney’s grace gives her a unique identity.
Pop culture is already buzzing with cosplay, dance adaptations, and fan theories about where she goes next in the John Wick universe. As someone who writes about film every day, I truly believe Rooney will become a symbol of cinematic power.
10. Conclusion: A New Kind of Killer Is Born
In Ballerina, Rooney isn’t just fighting for revenge—she’s reclaiming her identity. The movie reminds us that killers can cry, dancers can kill, and grace can be deadly.
As a 25-year-old boy who grew up watching action films, this story hit me differently. It wasn’t just cool—it was emotional. It wasn’t just violent—it was poetic.
The Ballerina Assassin is more than just a character—she is a movement. A performance. A storm hidden in silence.
